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Health Ministry seeks PAHO-WHO approval to use blood plasma from recovered COVID-19 patients
As the number of Coronavirus (COVID-19) cases continues to gradually rise (it currently stands at 75) in Guyana, the Ministry of Public Health has disclosed that it is seeking approval from the Pan-American Health Organization/ World Health Organization (PAHO/WHO) to utilize convalescent plasma to treat patients who have been infected with the dreaded disease.
Deputy Chief Medical Officer, Dr. Karen Gordon-Boyle
Plasma is the liquid part of the blood that carries cells and proteins throughout the body.
In announcing the aforementioned, Deputy Chief Medical Officer (DMCO), Dr. Karen Gordon-Boyle emphasised that the method of treatment has not been approved by PAHO/WHO. However the United States Food and Drug Administration (US- FDA) has begun allowing doctors across the US to begin using plasma donated by coronavirus patients to treat the critically ill.
Convalescent plasma is obtained from the donor through apheresis, a process in which whole blood is removed from the donor via the veins and passed through a machine where the blood is separated by filtration or centrifuge into components such as platelets, plasma, leukocytes, lymphocytes and red blood cells.
After separation, the desired blood component, in this case plasma, is removed and the remainder of the blood is re-infused back to the patient. The process takes a couple of hours. Thus far, over 600 patients in the U.S. have been given the treatment, all of whom have recovered.
This form of treatment dates back centuries and was used during the flu pandemic of 1918, in an era before modern vaccines and antiviral drugs. Some experts have argued that it might be the best hope for combating the coronavirus until more sophisticated therapies can be developed, which could take several months, according to the WHO.
Despite the fact that this treatment method is being considered a “trial” by the global health organization, the DCMO stated that “Guyana is poised to possible join one of those trials,” while noting that Guyana has sent the relevant formalities to commence the treatment method.
Dr. Gordon- Boyle specifically stated that, “Imagine you transfuse somebody with antibodies, it’s like giving them an immune boost, and it stands to reason that it should be helpful to people who are struggling to overcome the disease.”
She continued, “People who are overcoming the disease or who have been sick and they are now winning the battle –the plasma is rich in antibodies, which are things to fight the disease.”
Treatment will immediately begin once the necessary approval has been granted by PAHO/WHO, as the National Blood Bank has gathered three units of plasma from the patients who have recovered from the disease.
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